OK, if you didn’t know Siem Reap was the closest town to Angkor Wat, and the famous Angkor Temples, then you’ve come to the wrong town. Of course Angkor Wat is the main attraction for people who come here. But that is its downfall as well as its attraction. Two million people visit it each year… and it shows. So, here in this section, we will look at other temples. Places you may never hear of. How to do the temples with fewer tourists. It’s a fun place and to have a temple to yourself can’t be bad!
But we will also look at special events happening at the major temples. And some of those have tourists, but many more are known only to locals … and us … and if you follow the blog, to you too!
The day before it had been pouring with rain. I’d called and postponed the trip. Now this morning, at 7.15, it still looked like rain, but was temporarily dry. That’s a perk of the wet season here. I called my motorbike taxi friend Rothnak, “We go now OK?”. He came … Read More →
It’s day two on our three day chronological tour of Angkor. We’ve got a lot to cover. We’re still pre 900 CE. Let’s get going! So we’re refreshed, and looking for more! In 893, King Yasovarman (889-910) moved the capital as we said above. He built the temple on the … Read More →
OK, we’ve resisted long enough. We’ve always said we’d never do a review of Angkor Wat, or Angkor Thom or the other major temples. We’ve got close. We reviewed Angkor Wat from the outside and Angkor Thom without tourists, but we’ve resisted going to the main tourist drags. We did … Read More →
I’ve had a few people say to me “It’s all very well having all these ideas, but it’s too confusing to make an itinerary from them.” This indeed may be a problem. Siem Reap Post . com offers so much, it’s hard choosing what to do. There is also the … Read More →
“It’s not the getting there, it’s the journey” There were in Angkorian times (and still are) three notable hills in the immediate area of Angkor Wat. To the North East is my much talked about Phnom Bok. Close to Angkor itself is the tourist’s favourite sunset site, Phnom Bakheng. And … Read More →
We all know sunsets are great times to take photos. In the Angkor area, there are about 5,000 (my guess) tourists, each day who go to Phnom Bakheng to photo the sunset. In this past high season, there were so many, that the authority was closing the hill to late … Read More →
Everyone who comes to Siem Reap visits Angkor Wat. It’s the law! Estimates vary, but it’s around a million tourists a year. That’s an awful lot of people travelling to a relatively small temple. For the obvious reason (the reason is the temple is obvious!) we haven’t covered it in … Read More →
A friend of ours, Leigh Leibel, recently visited Siem Reap. She was lauding the Angkor National Museum so much, we persuaded her to write this article. I hope you enjoy it and we hope that we can persuade Leigh to write more for us in the future. Thanks Leigh. “My … Read More →
Tucked away off the beaten track, some 50 km from Siem Reap, is an unusual sight. Kbal Spean. The name literally means “Bridge Head”. Here you will find the “River of the 1,000 lingas”. Don’t confuse this one with another river in the Kulen mountains by the same name. These … Read More →
We are indebted to Nick from Indochine Ex for this article.He sent it to us and we’re pleased to include it as sent. “Route 66 was the ancient highway connecting the cities of the Angkorian Empire and is still marked on modern day road maps though in reality is little … Read More →
As you know, I love finding out of the way temples and exploring them. Particularly when they don’t have the usual crowd of tourists pouring all over them. I’d heard of Koh Ker and finally managed to get a trip out there. This is a remote site, about 120km from … Read More →
Prasat Preah Vihear. It’s a name that people in both Thailand and Cambodia know well. It’s the cause of fighting between the two countries, as both claim it to be their own. It’s right on the border between the two. TECHNICALLY you have to enter from Thailand, but the access … Read More →
You know Angkor Thom, the great city of the Angkor Kings. If you’ve even spent one day visiting the temples, it probably started with a trip to the South Gate and on to Bayon. Two million people each year follow the same route, and you can’t avoid them. Or can … Read More →
Today was the second day of the Khmer New Year. We decided to go to Bakong. My friend said there usually was a party there. He was not joking! Although he said there were notably fewer people than normal, it looked pretty packed to me! He thought the “do” at … Read More →
- Journey to the Back of Bayon I like catchy subtitles. I was thinking about the Back of Bayon all the way home. OK it’s trivial of me. Never (I am sure) in the last 700 years has the back of Bayon seen such a party! I was amazed. Not … Read More →
Phnom Bok, it’s a long walk from Siem Reap. Some walks are fun, some are educational, and some are just long. To walk to Phnom Bok from Siem Reap is a real challenge and a half!! I started at 6 am and got a motorbike taxi to the ticket office … Read More →
OK, if you didn’t know Siem Reap was the closest town to Angkor Wat, and the famous Angkor Temples, then you’ve come to the wrong town. Of course Angkor Wat is the main attraction for people who come here. But that is its downfall as well as its attraction. Two million people visit it each year… and it shows. So, here in this section, we will look at other temples. Places you may never hear of. How to do the temples with fewer tourists. It’s a fun place and to have a temple to yourself can’t be bad!
